The Voyages of Tallman7
by Tallman7
Summary: These are the conversations which helped shape my writing. They relate to any work I've made, which as of 5/7/2014, is my "Red Alert: Dawn" series. If you haven't read the story, these won't mean much to you. They may not mean much anyway. Even so, here they are. Also, if I have to put conversations relating to THIS "story" in here, my head will implode. Freaking recursion.
1. Introduction

**INTRODUCTION**

_**This "story" is an idea I had fairly recently. It came from the notion that I believe being honest and transparent with my readers is a **_**must.**_** My thought processes, and the way my stories are developed, are integral to the way I think and write. While I can't explain **_**every**_** action and decision I've made in writing my stories, my hope is that these "logs" will give you an insight into how my mind works. Hopefully, they should also answer some of the questions you have about certain things.**_

_**Basically, here's what each "chapter" is: when I respond to a review, the reader and I have a conversation about the way I wrote the story. It reveals background details that I consider "canon," but which **_**don't**_** appear anywhere else. Additionally, they're subject to change, since nothing in them is "official." My hope is that by reading these conversations, people will be better able to understand the story, and how it came to be.**_

_**Some of these passages are long, and some are short. Some happened in a single day, and others took place over several. They're basically copy-pasted from my PM inbox on FanFiction, with minor editing and formatting to make for an easier read. I've taken the liberty of correcting spelling errors and such, but for the most part, these are raw, un-redacted conversations. Unfortunately, some of my earliest conversations are missing. I'm not sure if I deleted them (if so, I'm sorry, but hindsight is 20-20), or if FF auto-deleted them after a certain time period. Either way, I'm posting what I **_**do_ have._****  
**

_**With all that said, I want to make something perfectly clear: these conversations contain MASSIVE, **_**MASSIVE**_** SPOILERS.**_

_**In case anyone missed it the first time, I'll say it again, with a bit more emphasis:**_

* * *

_**These conversations contain MASSIVE, **_**MASSIVE**_** SPOILERS.**_

* * *

_**If you read beyond this point, you can expect to have plot details from quite a ways down the road revealed to you. If you've already read the story, some of these won't be a problem. Some will. While none of the information in these conversations is set in stone, some of it will likely appear in the future. You have been warned.**_

_**Here's the way the conversations are structured:**_

**The original Review or PM will be underlined and bolded, if it came from someone who isn't me.**

If I started the conversation, the original text will be underlined, but not bolded.

My text will be in standard font.

**Reader/reviewer text will be bolded, but not underlined.**

_**Bolded and italicized text like this is something I added after the fact, in much the same style as my Author Notes at the beginning and end of chapters. I'll also include the screen name of the person I was talking to, as well as the date/dates the conversation took place on.**_

_**If anyone reading this was a member of the conversations shown, and you'd like your name or identity redacted for some reason, let me know, and I'll do it. Even so, I won't redact parts of the messages unless they contain personal information (which they almost certainly won't). Additionally, these logs won't contain **_**every**_** conversation I've ever had that relates to TDoM. They'll only contain the ones that have something I feel is relevant in them.**_

_**OK, I think that's everything. **_

_**Therefore, without further ado, I present to you:**_

_**The Voyages of the USS Tallman7: writer, reader, and all around neurotic individual. Abandon all hope ye who enter here, and my god have mercy on your soul.**_


	2. Chapter 1

_**This conversation took place on March 14**__**th**__**, between me and SpecH82. As a reminder, h**_**_ere's the way the conversations are structured:_**

**The original Review or PM will be underlined and bolded, if it came from someone who isn't me.**

If I started the conversation, the original text will be underlined, but not bolded.

My text will be in standard font.

**Reader/reviewer text will be bolded, but not underlined.**

**_Bolded and italicized text like this is something I added after the fact, in much the same style as my Author Notes at the beginning and end of chapters._**

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**Nooooooooooo it was all so good, until I read the name Shepard, in this chapter! Don't tell me this is "mass effect games" in a new skin, like story! :(**

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Sorry mate. I warned you in the Prologue that this story was gonna revolve around Shep and the ME timeline in general. Depending on how this series goes, I'll branch out further at some point in the future, but for now, what you see is what you get. Still, I encourage you to stick around for a while. You might see something you enjoy.

* * *

**Hmmmm, well tell me Shep will be female when Eden prime takes place since M Sheps are boring and if anyone does die at Virmire it will be Alenko and not Ashley, can't stand Alenko at all after his sobby sobbing story in mass effect!**

**Well I'll read trough to chapter 9 today and see what you've got.**

* * *

You know, if you had gotten to me yesterday, Shepard could have been female. I just finished writing a passage referring to him as "John." Again though, it says right in the description that Shep is male, and that's what my current plans revolve around. If it's any consolation, I don't particularly care for Alenko either. He just always seemed robotic and flat to me. While I haven't planed ahead to Virmire, I can just about guarantee that Kaidan will die before Ashley, if there is a death. Just try not to judge the story on what I haven't written yet based on the bare bones description.

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**Yeah it's fine, liked your diplomacy though, show the Quarians down the council's throat's... Surprise hehehe :) Hope Tevos dies of a heart attack, with that surprise! ;)**


	3. Chapter 2

_**This conversation took place on March 14**__**th**__**, between me and revan193. As a reminder, h**_**_ere's the way the conversations are structured:_**

**The original Review or PM will be underlined and bolded, if it came from someone who isn't me.**

If I started the conversation, the original text will be underlined, but not bolded.

My text will be in standard font.

**Reader/reviewer text will be bolded, but not underlined.**

**_Bolded and italicized text like this is something I added after the fact, in much the same style as my Author Notes at the beginning and end of chapters._**

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**I have a question: why do humans use the Mass Relays? Don't they use "Chronosphere" technology as their form of FTL travel (which is, in my opinion, better than the Mass Relays)?**

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Nope. Chrono tech has a limited range, depending on the size and strength of the sphere. For a suit, it's a kilometer or so, and a dozen or so with land vehicles _**(like Doom Fortresses)**_. A small ship can manage to get you from orbit to the surface of a planet, or move the ship itself a few thousand kilometers. A large chronoport is like a Boeing 747: it can get you anywhere in the star system, but not much farther. To get between systems or across the galaxy, you need either conventional FTL (see Einstein &amp; Zalinsky's explanation in Prologue 3) for up to 50 light-years (3 days of travel time at 5000x light speed) or Mass Relays for more than that.


	4. Chapter 3

_**This conversation took place on March 14**__**th**__** and 15th, between me and SpecH82. As a reminder, h**_**_ere's the way the conversations are structured:_**

**The original Review or PM will be underlined and bolded, if it came from someone who isn't me.**

If I started the conversation, the original text will be underlined, but not bolded.

My text will be in standard font.

**Reader/reviewer text will be bolded, but not underlined.**

**_Bolded and italicized text like this is something I added after the fact, in much the same style as my Author Notes at the beginning and end of chapters._**

* * *

**Owned hahaha oh poor Asari diplomat, got to love non-bullshit diplomacy:)  
Why they would want in on the treaty on ship production? I can't understand but hey it's your story. :)**

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Putting themselves in the Treaty reverses the balance of power as far as fleets go. It used to be that the Turians could have however many ships they wanted, and everybody else could only build enough to meet that 5:3:1 ratio. Now, the Alliance can build their fleet to absurdity, and the Turians have to suck it up.

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**But not being in the treaty, would mean they don't have to answer to anyone when it comes to building ships :)**

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That's the thing. They can build as many or as few as they want to, whether they're in the treaty or not. By placing themselves in it, the only thing they've _**[done]**_ is limit the number of ships the Turians can build. Since they're at the top, the number of ships each race can build is tied to theirs, not the other way 'round. They're actually in a stronger position this way than if they hadn't joined. Plus, this limits the number of carriers the Turians can build as well, since those weren't part of the treaty originally.

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**... True :)  
Well, at least the Quarians are above the Turians. That must hurt their pride like hell! ;)**

**Oh the latest chapter, I guess Jenkins didn't have a chronosuit, since he got killed by puny drones!**

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Either that or they got him before he could make it out. Same diff though. They called him Jenkins for a reason: so he could charging in and die like good ol' Leeroy.

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**Haha, that's true :)**


	5. Chapter 4

_**This conversation took place on March 12**__**th**__** to 15th, between me and Lord Edric. As a reminder, h**_**_ere's the way the conversations are structured:_**

**The original Review or PM will be underlined and bolded, if it came from someone who isn't me.**

If I started the conversation, the original text will be underlined, but not bolded.

My text will be in standard font.

**Reader/reviewer text will be bolded, but not underlined.**

**_Bolded and italicized text like this is something I added after the fact, in much the same style as my Author Notes at the beginning and end of chapters.\_**

**_Note that this conversation had two original messages associated with it, so the chronology here isn't perfect._**

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**I was wondering if there will be any Yuriko super clones in this story? also I do miss the Japanese Giga-Fortress, those things were awesome, still great work on the story, I love these fast updates.**

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**I love that last line, even if it wasn't from the Art of War, I'm surprised you didn't put any low yield nukes on that fortress, or mention any shields (not that it really needed it, but it looks too expensive not to have it).**

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I'm not sure about putting any Empire based tech in the story will work. After all, they didn't even exist in this timeline. Then again, even without Einstein, FT still came up with chronosphere and SPECTRUM tech in RA3, so we'll see. As for Yuriko clones though, that does sound like something Cerberus would do...

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**All we need is anime and giant transforming robots should eventually be made, plus you can't say you can't say Tesla troopers don't look like big robot suits already. Besides, the Japanese are part of the alliance of RA2, some of those scientists have to be part of their R&amp;D division, plus we know all scientists are geeks and what is geekier then the Shogun Executioner (not saying all of it is needed, but Empire tech seemed to all use lasers and energy weapons and seemed more futurey than the rest of the stuff, thought it might make good ships and weapons when ME1 starts, and I just can't help imagining Shepard blowing up a Reaper with Giga Fortress eye beams.)**

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It totes has shields. You know, the ones that can stop meteors. Call it the Allied/Soviet answer to the Empire Giga-Fortress.

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**I like your Doom Fortress. It really speaks to that inner boy in me that wants that unstoppable fort, and I love these super speed updates.**

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_**I think that's enough for today. I've released five "chapters" for this thing, and there's plenty more to come. Again, I don't have a release schedule for these conversation, but there'll be more coming soon.**_


	6. Chapter 5

_**This conversation took place on March 12**__**th**__** to 15th, between me and Drgyen. As a reminder, h**_**_ere's the way the conversations are structured:_**

**The original Review or PM will be underlined and bolded, if it came from someone who isn't me.**

If I started the conversation, the original text will be underlined, but not bolded.

My text will be in standard font.

**Reader/reviewer text will be bolded, but not underlined.**

**_Bolded and italicized text like this is something I added after the fact, in much the same style as my Author Notes at the beginning and end of chapters._**

* * *

**Letting you know that your story has an interesting premise. I recommend the C&amp;C/ME fic "Renegade" to shape this fusion universe you are constructing.**

**Also, I have a picky question/idea on the matter of psychics. Can it be possible that humans do have an ESP ability innate in their genetics rather than being built-up as depicted in Red Alert? Think about this as psychics do have potentials, but Yuri's war painted psychic and ESP users in a VERY bad light - for the public at least. But for the military it is feasible rather than being seen as some kind of bane which depends on the** user.

* * *

While I don't want to give any major spoilers, I will say that I plan to address the issue of psychic powers later in the series, particularly mind control. After all, there is one (seemingly) minor change I made to the official RA2 timeline that I mentioned in "Interlude" that foreshadows this. I'll give you a hint: It takes place before the year 2000.

* * *

**I'm confused about chapter 8 when there are Turians that manage to land on Shanxi after the whopping the PRISM defense grid made an instant curb stomp battle. Explain?**

* * *

I mentioned in the passage with Hackett that Shanxi was a relatively small (and therefore new) colony. Unlike Rapture, they didn't have a defense grid. Believe it or not, most Human colonies don't since they're so damn expensive. That's part of the reason they had to catch the Turians at Rapture while they had the chance, and why the grid was "inactive;" so they could catch them flat-footed. Ambushing them like that will only work once. After all, the Turians aren't complete idiots, they just have trouble thinking outside the box, hence the whole "no carriers" thing. Thanks for bringing it to my attention; I might need to be a bit more explicit with my explanations.

* * *

**Yeah you weren't exactly explicit on mentioning the fact that the Turians attacked two planets Rapture and Shanxi.**

* * *

Actually, strike that, it wasn't solely with Hackett; it was a combination of his and Victus' viewpoints. Still, I think I'll give it another mention in Chapter 5 to clear things up.

* * *

**Also, are interested in making codex entries, or probably making a forum where users like you can discuss and brainstorm new ideas?**

* * *

I hadn't considered a forum. I guess I could give it a go. As far as codex entries are concerned, that's also a possibility. I'm just not sure how to handle it ATM. I'll think of something.

* * *

**From every ME crossover there's always a codex to better explain the background of the universe. Better than having characters reciting history all the time when you have everything written down in stone.**

* * *

Fair enough. I started a forum for TDoM _**(said forum is now gone, due to lack of utility. Consider these logs my version of Codex)**_, so I'll probably post a thread for them there. It should keep the main story from getting too cluttered, and I can post them whenever I need to. Thanks for the advice.

* * *

**Better write the link address for the forum to know where it is.**

**Also, another ME recommendation I found is call Paragon Reinterpretation. There are two stories sharing the same title which involved a mostly optimistic AU narrative of ME in which begins with a peaceful First Contact.**  
**The one written by Rilly B. Dilly shows how an Alliance friendly/coexisting to A.I. And synthetics managed to made peace with the Geth, which therefore prevented the creation of the Heretic Geth.**

**I am also curious about using the terminology Great World War as it is very big mouthful to say it when it can be easily said without "Great." Furthermore, it is becoming more interchangeable with "World War" something-something.**

* * *

I'm just using the names the _**[C&amp;C] **_wiki uses. And you're right, I'll probably just start calling them WWII, WWIII, WWIV, etc. "World War" is just a generic term Humans use for a really big war.


End file.
